Foodgrains at concessional prices for poor; total cost Rs 82 bn

The government on Monday announced a dual pricing policy to provide foodgrains at concessional rates to those living below the poverty line.

The government also proposed to extend the issue of specially subsidised foodgrains to the beneficiaries under the Employment Assurance Scheme and the Jawahar Rozgar Yojna and issue one kilogram of rice or wheat per person daily.

This was announced in the Lok Sabha by Prime Minister H D Deve Gowda and in the Rajya Sabha by Food and Civil Supplies Minister Devendra Prasad Yadav.

The prime minister said the central issue prices for rice and wheat had not been revised after February 1994. Subsequently, the minimum support price for both rice and wheat had been raised three and four times respectively.

Taking into account these revisions and the increase in other incidental charges and at the same time not to cause too much of hardship to the people, the government has decided to revise the the central issue prices for the targetted public distribution scheme.

The total subsidy cost to the exchequer will work out to Rs 82.829 billion.

The targetted public distribution system (TPDS) is primarily focused on the poor and will benefit 320 million people below the poverty line. The food subsidy under the TPDS will be about Rs 80 billion. A quantum of 180 metric tonnes of foodgrains is likely to be issued under the TPDS.

Any state which wanted to cover a large number of persons or increase the scale of issue or reduce the price, was free to do so provided it could meet the additional requirement of foodgrains and funds from its own resources, he said.

In implementing the targetted public distribution system, the state governments must identify the beneficiaries under TPDS, issue special cards to them, and ensure delivery of foodgrains to these intended beneficiaries.

Detailed guidelines had been issued in this regard and they are placed on the table of the house. The state governments would follow these guidelines scrupulously and see that the poorest section of our society get their entitled quantum of food grains without fail, the prime minister said.

Yadav said nearly 36 per cent of the population of the country would be covered under the PDS.

The state governments would now have to ensure foolproof identification of the poor under the poverty line, delivery of foograins to the fair price shops for distribution to the poor in a transparent and accurate manner, he said.

UNI